Keith’s note: NASA put out a report NASA’s Economic Impact Report for fiscal year (FY) 2023. In addition to its data rich/ lousy common language construction (see A Nice NASA Economic Impact Report By / For Wonks) NASA is not really spending much effort to tell people about it. In addition to the report there are additional data files and one PDF file for every state (but nothing for Puerto Rico). But other than some info from GSFC, KSC, and Armstrong, NASA PAO seems to have ignored its own websites and not sent out any media advisories or press releases relevant to local state economic impacts (no mention here) just their main release and a KSC link. NASA has once again demonstrated that it is utterly clueless and bereft of strategic thought when it comes to demonstrating its value and relevance to its stakeholders, taxpayers, and its puppet masters in DC. This is going to come back and bite the agency. It is downright embarrassing that the same agency that can look outward and back at the beginning of time and reprogram 50 year old spacecraft in interstellar space can’t explain itself to the people that pay for the whole space thing. More snarky detail below.

Keith’s note: According to this new report New Report Shows NASA’s $75.6 Billion Boost to US Economy “NASA highlighted how its Moon to Mars activities, climate change research and technology development, and other projects generated more than $75.6 billion in economic output across all 50 states and Washington, D.C., in fiscal year 2023. … Combined, NASA’s missions supported 304,803 jobs nationwide, and generated an estimated $9.5 billion in federal, state, and local taxes throughout the United States. The study found NASA’s Moon to Mars activities generated more than $23.8 billion in total economic output and supported an estimated 96,479 jobs nationwide. For investments in climate research and technology, the agency’s activities generated more than $7.9 billion in total economic output and supported an estimated 32,900 jobs in the U.S.” Full report

• Great news. Everyone should know by now that NASA has a broad impact in terms of economic factors. It also has a great impact on education, inspiration and serves as a potent source of soft power globally. Alas, the NASA people who generated this report, the people who run education and public outreach, and the people who run international relations at NASA will not make the best use of this report – or each other’s metrics. The report has lots of numbers. How about some real world stories and metrics that are meaningful to actual human taxpayers, citizens, students etc. – things that they can wrap their minds around when it comes to their daily lives, dreams, futures, and finances? This is a fine report but it was written by econometrics wonks and is only relevant to other econometrics wonks – not real people. If you ask NASA Public Affairs about real world impacts of this report they will be clueless and simply direct you back to the report. I’d like to know:
• How does this economic news affect the communities where the money is spent? [Give examples of specific, identifiable communities and impact that NASA spending has had]
• How were these economic metrics generated and how do they map NASA’s impact when compared to other agencies? [Does DoD spend more/less?; how does this compare to local non-space industries?]
• How do these efforts find synergy in the Artemis Accord signatories? [NASA Space Apps and other OIIR activities have an impact, yes? So .. what is it and how does it map against various NASA agreements and collaborations and where might there be new opportunities?]
• What impact does this pervasive NASA spending and participation affect career choices for young people?[Is there a correlation between spending in a locality and the number of students choosing space science and engineering and allied fields?]
• How do the communities where this money is being spent get to interact directly with NASA missions (other than communities with large NASA centers)? [How many ISS student interactions, town halls, etc. are done and where? what areas have the largest number of people’s names on space missions, mailing list memberships?]
• How does the economic news in this report find its way into national, regional, and home town media stories [why not create a publicly available, updated list of press citations so we can all see our tax dollars at work while NASA does all of its amazing things?]

Keith’s note: According to a press release “Science Committee Leaders Commend House Passage of NASA Reauthorization“: “Today, House Science, Space, and Technology Committee leaders praised the House passage of H.R. 8958, the NASA Reauthorization Act of 2024. This bipartisan legislation reaffirms our commitment to leading global space and science endeavors and emphasizes the importance of commercial partnerships and international collaboration in advancing space exploration and scientific research. … Read the bill’s Fact Sheet and Section by Section.”

Source: PSI Planetary Exploration Newsletter: “As many of you will have seen, earlier this week NASA made the shocking decision to cancel the VIPER project following completion of the rover’s build. It now faces the prospect of being dismembered. We have organized an open letter to Congress from the wider science community asking them to refuse any request to cancel this mission, by ensuring that it continues to be included as a budgetary line-item. You can find this letter here: https://forms.gle/XDSzTra4NPSS1VC27 If you have any questions, please feel free to contact the letter’s organizers, Dr Benjamin Fernando ([email protected]) or Dr Parvathy Prem ([email protected]) who have organized this letter in a personal capacity.”

Keith’s note: The draft FY 2025 spending bill is working its way through the House. NASA Science gets the same amount as it was supposed to get in FY 2024 which equates to a ~$230M cut. NASA education programs get $89 million – the same as it was supposed to get in FY 2024 i.e no big increase as The White House had requested. Looks like the Artemis Program will do OK – even if the education for the Artemis Generation will not.

• Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee Hearing – Advancing Scientific Discovery: Assessing the Status of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate
• March 21, 2024 10:00 AM EDT
• Hearing charter
• Dr. Nicola Fox, Associate Administrator, Science Mission Directorate, NASA
• Mr. George A. Scott, Acting Inspector General, NASA
• Dr. Jonathan I. Lunine, Cornell University
• Mr. A. Thomas Young, Former Director, GSFC and Former President and COO, Martin Marietta
• Watch live

Keith’s note: A lot of things in space are the direct result of Jeff’s quiet, diligent, and inspired work behind the scenes at both NASA and Congress over the decades. Jeff could use a hand right about now. Go to the Jeff Bingham Cancer Treatment and Care Fund and please consider making a donation. Thanks.

NASA’s Science Mission Directorate will hold a Budget Town Hall meeting with Associate Administrator for Science Nicky Fox and her leadership team on Wednesday from 1:00 – 2:00 pm EDT. Participants are invited to submit their questions below and/or vote up questions already posted.

Keith’s note: True to form, overt politico Senator Administrator Bill Nelson D-FL said “As history has proven, as the present has shown, and as the future will continue to demonstrate, an investment in NASA is an investment in America for the benefit of humanity,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “President Biden’s budget will fund our nation’s abilities and leadership for the future of space exploration, scientific discovery, cutting-edge technology, climate data, the next generation of aeronautics, and inspiring our future leaders – the Artemis Generation.” This is, of course, nonsense since NASA’s budget overruns/delays on Artemis, Mars Sample Return etc. have already begin to eat up other projects. An insufficient FY 25 budget simply makes things worse. Remember just a few years ago the NASA mantra was “Journey to Mars” in the 2030s. Well, the new variant – NASA “Moon to Mars” thing now only shows the Moon – no Mars – in the 2030s. Negative progress – indeed its space exploration Shrinkflation. Clicking your heels together, crossing your fingers, and whistling “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” ain’t gonna solve anything, Bill. NASA’s plans are royally screwed. And the Artemis Generation will not witness all the happy talk you continue to throw their way. I guess that Moon rock is not in the Oval Office anymore.

• According to Marcia Smith @SpcPlcyOnline {see chart above} From NASA budget summary, latest Artemis schedule. SpaceX Starship HLS test in 2026, same year as Artemis III landing. Artemis V, first use of Blue Origin’s HLS, now in 2030.
• According to @Lori_Garver The @POTUS ’25 @NASA budget of $25.38B is ~$2.5B less than projected last year. Along w/ congressional cut of $2.3B for 2024, the agency’s growth trend is now reversed. Absorbing these reductions w/out cancelling major programs will cause delays across the board. Tough choices.
• The Coalition for Deep Space Exploration put out a statement that only expresses concern about human spaceflight – not all the other things NASA does.
• In a 7 March Statement the Planetary Society only focuses on space science – and not human spaceflight
• Here are the Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Request documents posted by NASA. Read them and weep.

Keith’s note: I tossed out some tweets out today on @NASAWatch about the layoff and budget situation. The President’s FY 2025 budget will drop on 11 March. It is not going to have much – if any – good news. Mostly bad news that will pit one part of NASA against another. Lots of things will be cut – to the point that some rather draconian decisions will need to be made. Whatever happens please don’t give up on your space dreams.

• When the FY25 budget request from the White House drops we’ll all be seeing that exploration i.e. #Artemis has a much higher priority than does science at #NASA Its not just math but also what @NASA 9th floor sees as priorities and what issues they have to face on Capitol Hill.
• NASA budget math: Look at #Mars Sample Return & what they got ~$600m has to come from somewhere assuming no more bad news. But there will be bad news when WH FY25 budget request drops. MSR $ will have to come from somewhere like Dragonfly/Earth Science or no MSR. Its math folks.
• While the folks at @NASAJPL got hit first with layoffs first they will soon be coming to @NASAGoddard and since civil servants will likely be involved it’ll be time for a #RIF. Again this is budget math folks. If the money ain’t there then @NASA can’t spend it.
• Meanwhile we have #ISS ops to pay until 2030 then $1-2 billion to dump it into the ocean. Meanwhile fund @Axiom_Space &/or @OrbitalReef &/or @Starlab_Space LEO space stations while also building #Gateway lunar space station and & human missions to the Moon at $2-4 billion a pop.
• Strange thing is – @NASA loves to talk about all that science goodness that humans will do on the Moon and Mars yet they are going to cut a lot of that off at the knees. What will the #Artemis crews do when they get there? Flags & footprints?

Keith’s note: According to this press release NASA’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel Releases 2023 Annual Report. According to the ASAP Report: “The current budget environment has significant implications for mission and safety risk. NASA has a very full mission plate. To the extent that their budget request is not fully funded, the leadership will need to acknowledge and make critical decisions with respect to program content or schedules, which will need to be adjusted to meet fiscal realities. Attempting to do all planned efforts on expected timelines will introduce unacceptable and unmanaged risk. The Agency will need to rely on its developed strategic vision, objectives, and architecture to establish well-defined priorities to ground its endeavors in reality – taking fully into account the risk-benefit tradeoffs. It is equally critical that the Agency be transparent about these realities and choices with its stakeholder and workforce. Stakeholders must come to understand and respect realistic expectations and schedules, and the Agency cannot bow to external pressure to exceed rational anticipations. The workforce must be confident that NASA leadership’s expectations are reasonable and authentic. The Agency is blessed with a workforce that has traditionally given one hundred percent to achieving difficult goals. If those talented and dedicated personnel are cognizant that they are embarked on a journey that is not just challenging and risky, but not realistically achievable, there will be both a serious erosion of morale and an undermining of the essential safety culture. On the assumption that NASA will make the tough choices to execute safely and effectively within budgeted resources, an even greater challenge resides in the budget uncertainty resulting from Congress’ consistent inability to provide timely and definitive appropriations. The ambiguity within which NASA must plan and execute its mission is deeply troublesome. It causes distraction from the focus on the “real work,” including safety, adds untold hours and days of unproductive labor, and (perhaps most important) hampers the ability to make timely decisions that ultimately impact safety and mission assurance. Given that it is unlikely that Congress will provide appropriate and timely budget clarity, NASA will be compelled to deal with this ambiguity. NASA should be candid and clear about – and Congress and other stakeholders should open their eyes to – the consequences of dealing with budget uncertainty.”

Keith’s note: According to this little gem that was tossed online after hours on a Friday “NASA Adjusts Agreements to Benefit Commercial Station Development“ “We continue to see an immense amount of dedication from our partners,” said Angela Hart, manager of Commercial Low Earth Orbit Development Program at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.“The agency is committed to continuing to work with industry with the goal having one or more stations in orbit to ensure competition, lower costs, and meet the demand of NASA and other customers.” Uh huh. Since when has NASA lowered the cost – of anything? This whole ISS vs Gateway/Artemis vs Orbital Reef vs Starlab vs Axiom vs Russia vs China vs Congress with regard to space stations is all going to result in an inelastic collision – soon. To some extent this announcement is like rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. The money is simply not there for everything, competing priorities are inherently non-synergistic, and in place of a coherent, national strategy – one that takes these things into account in a realistic way – we have a short-term, seat of the pants, ad hoc, fake it until you make it, free for all. Something has got to give since neither the money or a clear policy path are on the horizon. And the warning signs – if they are even apparent – will be ignored until it is too late. And expecting the National Space Council to do anything substantive is simply naive in the extreme. Oh then there’s the whole 2024 election thing and the fact that NASA has no idea when the moon walking resumes and … Just sayin’

“On December 31, 2023, former Science, Space, and Technology Committee Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson passed away. She was 88 years old. Ranking Member Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) made the following statement: I was deeply saddened to learn of the passing today of former Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson. Eddie, or “EBJ” as she was widely known, led the Science Committee through some of the most productive years of its existence, including passage of the massive CHIPS and Science Act. Throughout that time, she remained steadfast in her commitment to broaden opportunities to all Americans and make our country more equitable and just. Her accomplishments as Chair of the Committee will live on for decades. “But EBJ had another legacy as Chair of the Science Committee, and as a Member of Congress. She worked across the aisle to find consensus with Republican Members of Congress to address the most important issues of our day. In a time of profound division and partisanship, EBJ’s time as Chair was distinguished by the consistent bipartisan accomplishments the Committee produced. Her legacy of bipartisanship and civility is one that we desperately need right now. “EBJ’s contributions to our country and her beloved Dallas community are profound. She was an inspirational woman who’s loss will be deeply felt across America.” More. Ad Astra.

Keith’s note: This morning the House Committee on Natural Resources, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations held a hearing on space mining. It was obvious that this oddly-timed hearing – one that is not exactly of immediate importance – was, at best, a distraction. More often than not it was a chance to swipe at the other side on unrelated things while most (but not all) of the panel tried to stay on topic. Rep. Gosar chaired the hearing and mumbled through his text as if he has not slept for a week. Rep. Stansbury asked why the whole space mining thing (still decades away) was even being discussed when more important things need their attention. Rep. Rosendale sort of agreed with her, brought up near term domestic terrestrial mining issues, and took issue with a lot of what Greg Autry said. Indeed Rosendale was incredulous about mining issues and punctured one remark with “in OUTER SPACE?!?” There was lots of economic babble, a whole lotta China bashing, and gotcha comments (from both sides). What a waste of time. And of course at 1:20:00 in this video Trump Administration boarding party alumni Greg Autry took the bait from Rep. Eli Crane about “President Biden and his son” and dove into the conspiratorial talking point rabbit hole about consulting fees “for who knows what” while trying to say that he wants space policy to be non-partisan. Uh huh. Watch the hearing here also see “Hearing Preview: Moon Mining, China Bashing, And Space Advocate Choir Practice“).

Keith’s note: according to this notice: “On Tuesday, December 12, 2023, at 10:15 a.m., in room 1324 Longworth House Office Building, the Committee on Natural Resources, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold an oversight hearing titled “The Mineral Supply Chain and the New Space Race.” Five key messages are mentioned. The first two include the word “China”. The rest talk about supply chain issues, leadership, and space mining. One of the witnesses wrote a book with former Trump advisor Peter Navarro called “Death by China” – so I guess we can see what rabbit holes this hearing may dive into. We can’t even re-do Apollo after half a century and we get all upset when other nations try to. Don’t expect any solutions. This will just be a China bashing session mixed with ideas that space people only discuss with other space people – but not with the rest of us.

Keith’s note: Tweet from Alicia Brown @AliciaNBrown “Come work with NASA leg affairs! https://usajobs.gov/job/755157700.“ Hilarious. NASA Legislative Affairs wants to hire someone and they open the job application for TWO DAYS. And they are not even trying to hide the quick open and shut nature of the position. Hmm … I’ll bet they already have the person they want and they are just going through the motions – of looking like they are going through the motions – of actually doing a thorough process of looking for applicants. In two days. Oh yes Alicia Brown “.. also has experience advising on policy regarding space programs, national security, and the defense budget as a legislative aide to former Sen. Bill Nelson.”

Keith’s 29 Sep note: OK Team NASA – if you are a civil servant then the OPM Guidance for Shutdown Furloughs is a must-read If you are a contractor or grantee check with your local HR office. Regardless, everyone is going to get royally screwed over due to a dysfunctional clown train also known as the U.S. Congress. Update: Administrator Nelson statement: “If House Republicans force a shutdown, it will have devastating consequences for NASA, families across the country, and America’s global competitiveness. “We are deciding what actions are needed in the event of a congressional Republican-led government shutdown. NASA will maintain the people to protect life and property – operational missions, such as satellites, landers, and rovers, as well as the International Space Station and its crew.” 30 Sep Update: The clowns on the Hill played musical chairs and punted the shutdown for 45 days. So … it looks like everyone’s Thanksgiving may be miserable.

Keith’s note: According this release from a bunch of Senators “The legislation introduced as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that will be on the Senate floor next week, … blah blah blah”. At a time when everyone should be concerned with important things – such as war, education, healthcare – and NASA’s budget, the Senate is now caught up in this petty silliness – and manages to exceed the House’s nonsense with goofy things such as this to make compromise even harder. We’re doomed.

Keith’s note: What is this going to do to NASA’s Artemis plans, and issues within SMD over science missions – and the “nice to have” things like education? Stay tuned. According to Reuters: “The deal would suspend the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling until January of 2025, allowing the U.S. government to pay its bills. In exchange, non-defense discretionary spending would be capped at current year levels in 2024 and increased by only 1% in 2025.” Ouch. More.